Kickstarters Thread

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Pushing 8,000 backers now for Blade Runner. It might end up coming close to The One Ring Kickstarter that they had which was over 16,500 backers.
 
EDIT: moved to a new thread

It's pretty interesting that there are lots of comments all but demanding a solo mode.

I've always appreciated that feature. But to insist that it is integral to RPG design as a best practice or standard is a bit much?

From a business standpoint, it makes a lot of sense for cooperative board games. I can see more people backing a campaign or buying a game if it has that feature (not always easy to get a group together to play).

For RPGs, I suppose the same argument could be made. So, tacking on a solo mode, or solo campaigns, seems like a great idea!

But I don't quite understand some of the arguments that it should ALWAYS be a thing. Good idea, yes. Mandatory? huh?
 
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It's pretty interesting that there are lots of comments all but demanding a solo mode.

I've always appreciated that feature. But to insist that it is integral to RPG design as a best practice or standard is a bit much?

From a business standpoint, it makes a lot of sense for cooperative board games. I can see more people backing a campaign or buying a game if it has that feature (not always easy to get a group together to play).

For RPGs, I suppose the same argument could be made. So, tacking on a solo mode, or solo campaigns, seems like a great idea!

But I don't quite understand some of the arguments that it should ALWAYS be a thing. Good idea, yes. Mandatory? huh?

Probably a topic worthy of it's own thread.
 
It's pretty interesting that there are lots of comments all but demanding a solo mode.

I've always appreciated that feature. But to insist that it is integral to RPG design as a best practice or standard is a bit much?

From a business standpoint, it makes a lot of sense for cooperative board games. I can see more people backing a campaign or buying a game if it has that feature (not always easy to get a group together to play).

For RPGs, I suppose the same argument could be made. So, tacking on a solo mode, or solo campaigns, seems like a great idea!

But I don't quite understand some of the arguments that it should ALWAYS be a thing. Good idea, yes. Mandatory? huh?

The weird demands and odd sense of entitlement is the reason I've completely given up on participating in the comments sections on Kickstarters. Just the huge difference betweeen the first Hellboy board game kickstarter and the second a few years later was so indicative of this weird toxicity that's infected the site.
 
Blade Runner is about to finish blowing through all the initial stretch goals. I'm sure this was never considered in doubt as all the promotional images in the campaign are set up to assume all the stretch goals would be met. Although it does make me think of my tired old complaint that something like this never should have been a Kickstarter to begin with as it was already well known it would not only fund in seconds but also meet all the extended goals in short order. But I'm tired of yelling at the clouds. I guess this is just the new model and it has to be accepted.
 
Blade Runner is about to finish blowing through all the initial stretch goals. I'm sure this was never considered in doubt as all the promotional images in the campaign are set up to assume all the stretch goals would be met. Although it does make me think of my tired old complaint that something like this never should have been a Kickstarter to begin with as it was already well known it would not only fund in seconds but also meet all the extended goals in short order. But I'm tired of yelling at the clouds. I guess this is just the new model and it has to be accepted.
Sometimes Kickstarter is an effective pre-order system, that may be the case here. Stretch goals might have been assumed would be hit, but were added to create backer excitement.
 
Sometimes Kickstarter is an effective pre-order system, that may be the case here. Stretch goals might have been assumed would be hit, but were added to create backer excitement.
Absolutely. Kickstarter is totally a pre-order store now (even though the official word is that it is NOT). But everyone knows that it is.

It's like hockey. The brutal violence draws crowds and buzz. But officially, it is not condoned. But everyone knows that it is, and giving the opposing team's star player a concussion that takes him out for weeks is a well-accepted and viable strategy.
 
It's entirely why I stayed off Kickstarter for years. It was only the car crash of The Princess Bride KS that conviced me if I really do want something in my sweaty hands, perhaps I should participate.
 
Absolutely. Kickstarter is totally a pre-order store now (even though the official word is that it is NOT). But everyone knows that it is.
It really depends. For the larger ones, yeah, that's right, but for the smaller ones, the only thing you're preordering in a lot of cases is a dream.
 
It really depends. For the larger ones, yeah, that's right, but for the smaller ones, the only thing you're preordering in a lot of cases is a dream.
Very true and I often forget this.

I've supported small-time, or indie publishers too.

The big companies certainly eclipse the small. As usual.
 
I'm actually considering my pledge at the moment. On a whim I just looked for the Alien RPG here in the UK and I can get it for about £28 including postage, BR is currently running on the KS at £41 plus £10 to £12 postage.

As I'm currently only pledged at the lowest physical level (to get the basic rulebook), it may pay me to just wait and get it post KS for potentially a lot less.
 
I'm actually considering my pledge at the moment. On a whim I just looked for the Alien RPG here in the UK and I can get it for about £28 including postage, BR is currently running on the KS at £41 plus £10 to £12 postage.

As I'm currently only pledged at the lowest physical level (to get the basic rulebook), it may pay me to just wait and get it post KS for potentially a lot less.
That's always on my mind. Here in Canada, where I live, it is a gamble. I could wait and hope for a cheaper price, but sometimes it just doesn't work out.
 
I don't really think too hard about future pricing. I either think the KS itself is a good deal or not and will back or not based on that. I certainly have given various KS's a miss because they looked too bloody expensive though.
 
On that note, does this seem like a good deal to any of you? Am I making a mistake backing this? I love cooperative campaign games:

 
On that note, does this seem like a good deal to any of you? Am I making a mistake backing this? I love cooperative campaign games:

Yup, that's pricey. That said, the mini's look awesome. I guess for me it would depend on how badly the game needs those expansions to retain replayability, although I'll admit to having spend something like 200 or 300 on Descent all told without thinking to hard. :grin: $200 seems like an easy sell to me, but $400 is almost real money.
 
This video review by Average Gamer really sold me on it (I tend to take his opinion a bit more because he complains about stuff and isn't just a suck up to companies).

 
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I'm rationalizing the purchase of Anastyr in a few ways:

1. the core game pledge comes with 1 expansion included. That extends playlife right away.
2. the minis... they'll be great for other games (RPGs, Zombicide Black Plague, HeroQuest...) the sky's the limit
3. the "sidescroller beat-em-up" playstyle is SOOOO appealing to me! I don't have any games like that yet
4. I was willing to pay that much (130 USD) on just the core base game of Zombicide Marvel... for less content (not minis, CMON always heaps massive amounts of stretch goal minis). But still, it's just Zombicide, over and over, and I've already got loads of Zombicide.

EDIT: "where did Necrozius get all this spare cash from?" answer: from saving up for Marvel Zombicide and chickening out. Yikes. Also Canadian Income Tax was far less brutal than usual this year.
 
Free League's Blade Runner RPG campaign is up:

Going to back this one even if the odds of it getting played are slim. Free League is making it a little easier as like LotR I am once again finding the basic edition cover more interesting / attractive than the deluxe.
 
Going to back this one even if the odds of it getting played are slim. Free League is making it a little easier as like LotR I am once again finding the basic edition cover more interesting / attractive than the deluxe.
Go all in, then snag a standard copy, plus GM Screen and a couple extra sets of dice. It's what I did. Heh.
 
Go all in, then snag a standard copy, plus GM Screen and a couple extra sets of dice. It's what I did. Heh.

That's what I did with TOR, and will probably do the same with this.


Mmmm, my precious. My deluxe One Ring pledge came today. I'm so very glad I went with the embossed foil rulebook. Assuming they aren't all like that, anyway, the point is that it's dead sexy.

The deluxe TOR looks like a nice book, but for some reason it didn't grab me like the cover of the basic set. I guess I prefer my game books to have an illustrated cover. I'm having the same issue with the deluxe Blade Runner.
 
Going to back this one even if the odds of it getting played are slim. Free League is making it a little easier as like LotR I am once again finding the basic edition cover more interesting / attractive than the deluxe.
In a strange turn for me, I only backed at the $1 level. My wallet likes the fact that my obsession with Kickstarter seems to be waning.
 
Kickstarter serves a purpose. Companies don't get caught producing way too much stock, plus the cost of manufacturing and shipping can be paid for in advance. The stretch goals allow the company to produce more product and the customers get more bang for the buck as well as some consumerist/completist swag and exclusives. Also everyone gets to be part of a kind of social media event.

The downside, of course is that you can back something like Far West, or a company can sink itself with too small margins and too many stretch goals.

But, the majority of the time, everyone gets what they wanted out of it. Crowdfunding is what has allowed hundreds of RPG products to be made that otherwise would not have. It's a critical link in the "Do it yourself" chain and I'm glad we have it, even if we all spend too much money on it.
 
Absolutely agree that KS serves a purpose, and the vast majority of projects require it to be viable. I'm glad it's around and am not surprised with its success.

This one however is simply reminding me why I didn't use KS before, and financially making me realise this is a poor choice for me that I'm only holding to because I love BR so much. I don't like the 'pre-order' aspect of KS from companies that have clearly prepared all of the materials already, could release the project without KS, and have sunk far more into a project than the minimum amount on the basis they can fund X00%.
 
Been looking at this lately, I do love me some sci-fi; even better when it's retro focused. I'll probably toss a few bucks at it, see if it's worthwhile. Anyone familiar with Planet X Games?



Just received my copy, have only had time to flip through it but I'm pleased. The Sea Monkeys inspired ad on the back for Deepest Ones, own a bowlful of misery and terror - Instant pets, alone was worth the price of entry. :thumbsup:
 
Well, first I only backed Blade Runner for the core rulebook. Then I decided to add the screen. And shortly thereafter I was like fuck it, and backed for the starter set as well because of all the cool extra's in it. Oh well.
 
I feel I don't really need the quickstart rules but they're throwing an awful lot of cool stuff in with them: two sets of dice, a map, chase and obstacle cards, a scenario with a bunch of pretty handouts, etc.
 
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Going to back this one even if the odds of it getting played are slim. Free League is making it a little easier as like LotR I am once again finding the basic edition cover more interesting / attractive than the deluxe.
I preferred The One Ring limited cover. I think it looks better in real life than in pictures, but I went with the standard cover on Blade Runner. The kanji character doesn't have any real association for me.

I did add the standard One Ring cover as an add-on for my Blade Runner order. It's an interesting enough game that I want a second table copy.
 
The first supplement for "Mutants in the Now" (a TMNT inspired game) looks to have started its KS today:


Does anyone have Mutants in the Now? Any opinions on it?
 
The first supplement for "Mutants in the Now" (a TMNT inspired game) looks to have started its KS today:



Sure. I'm in. I don't know anything about Mutants in the Now. I remember it got brought up months ago and I was curious, but there wasn't any real detail provided.

But if they're gonna thumb their nose at Palladium. Then I'm down with that.

And in a bit of ironic serendipity, my pledge is roughly the same amount as a lost sale of the hardcover After the Bomb which is something I had a problem with recently because Palladium insisted on only selling it direct rather than carrying through and fulfilling their orders placed by retailers. Yeah. I like the symmetry of that.
 
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